NOAH in the Twin Cities gets financing boost from Freddie Mac

Here’s an acronym to get behind: NOAH, for naturally occurring affordable housing.

Freddie Mac, the federal mortgage agency, is offering $100 million to finance first-time mortgages as part of a larger effort to preserve affordable housing in and around Minneapolis.

The NOAH Impact Fund, an equity fund launched last year by the non-profit Greater Minnesota Housing Fund, has raised $32.5 million to acquire 1,000 affordable units vulnerable to market-rate and high-end housing conversion. Of that, $25 million will be invested and $7.5 million will enhance credit for the fund’s private investors.

Among the investors: Bremer Bank, Sunrise Banks, Western Bank, the Minnesota Housing Finance Agency, the McKnight Foundation, and Otto Bremer Trust. The NOAH Impact Fund is anchored by Hennepin County, where Minneapolis is based.